I own a business that plays music in a physical venue (e.g. restaurants, retail shop). Do I need to get permission to play such music?

Sound recording companies have a new right to collect licence fees for the broadcast or public performance of commercially published sound recordings.

Businesses that play recorded music in a physical venue (e.g. restaurants, hotels, retail shops) will need to obtain a licence for the public performance of the sound recordings.

This is in addition to a licence for the public performance of the underlying music (i.e. the musical composition and lyrics) in the sound recording.

However, you do not need to obtain a licence for the public performance of the sound recordings if the music is played through the radio. You may find out more on the types of licences businesses require to use copyright material at IPOS website here.